SLPA extends demurrage-free duration till 7 May

Monday, 27 April 2020 02:33 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Port Chief General Ratnayake says no more extension as congestion reaches peak

The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) has extended the demurrage-free period in the Colombo Port till 7 May as a relief measure to the import trade and shipping community.

“The Government has been very generous towards the shipping industry. To ensure continuous operations the SLPA extended the demurrage free from 14 April to 7 May,” SLPA Chairman Major General Daya Ratnayake told Daily FT.

Demurrage-free extension was given as a relief measure to companies due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Previously, demurrage charges were waived-off treating as holidays in the system from 14 March to 13 April. However, with the port reaching almost 90% of the storage capacity, he said that they had no plans of extending the concession to all three terminals post 7 May.

“Given this difficult period we extended our fullest cooperation to all the stakeholders. For almost close to two months we have only charged the basic rent which amounts to a very small sum. Going forward from 8 May, there is no room for us to provide such concessions and the penal duties will be charged,” he added.

The full capacity of the Colombo Port can accommodate a total of 137,000 TEUs from all three terminals at a time.

The economic cost of the decision is yet to be assessed, Ratnayake said.

Discover Kapruka, the leading online shopping platform in Sri Lanka, where you can conveniently send Gifts and Flowers to your loved ones for any event including Valentine ’s Day. Explore a wide range of popular Shopping Categories on Kapruka, including Toys, Groceries, Electronics, Birthday Cakes, Fruits, Chocolates, Flower Bouquets, Clothing, Watches, Lingerie, Gift Sets and Jewellery. Also if you’re interested in selling with Kapruka, Partner Central by Kapruka is the best solution to start with. Moreover, through Kapruka Global Shop, you can also enjoy the convenience of purchasing products from renowned platforms like Amazon and eBay and have them delivered to Sri Lanka.